Posted by Keith in Washington on Friday, March 12, 2004 at 12:49PM :
I am still scratching hy head. My 52 PW with a 6 volt positive ground system just is not keeping the battery alive. Here is what is happening.
I seem to be able to start and run the truck just fine. However the charging system really does not seem to be charging the battery as after I drive it for a while I end up with a weak or dead battery. It usually shows up when I have driven someplace and the battery just doesn't have enough to start the engine and I need to be towed about 20' and it will start right up. When I know that I have a low battery, such as on a cold morning and it has taken awhile to start the Amp meter never kicks over into the positive side. Never. It seems to sit at the mid point. However if I turn the light on with out the engine running it will kick to the negative side very nicely so I believe that the gauge is working. I just never see the needle get past the mid point or 0.
At idle my headlights are very dim but if I kick up the rmps slightly they become much brighter. Not unexpected behavior and seems to indicate that the generator is working. But sooner than later I end up having to put it on a charger to bring the battery back up. The battery is less than a year old and I replaced the battery as the last one was killed by the same problem.
I have flashed the system several times. No change.
I suspect my voltage regulator is not set correctly and is shutting the charging circuit down too soon.
Any ideas would be appreciated.
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